Torch



March 19, 1946. WALKER 2,396,765

TORCH Filed Oct. 28, 1942 lNVENTOR GEORGE L WAL/QFR I itm lwa A ATTORN EY-i Patented Mar. 19,1946

TORCH George L, Walker, Jersey City, N. J., assignor to Air Reduction Company, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application October 28, 1942, Serial No. 463,579

2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in torches such as are used for oxygen cutting.

One object of the invention is to provide an improved torch for cutting wide kerfs. While it is true that larger oxygen jets cut wider kerfs, .it is not economical to use larger jets than are required for the thickness of the work to be out. For additional width, such as in slot cutting, it is more advantageous touse a row of cutting jets spaced closely enough to produce a single kerf. This invention relates to torches of the type having a row of closely-spaced cutting jet orifices.

In accordance with one feature of the invention the cutting orifices are closerto the surface of the workpiece than are the preheating jet orifices. This relation gives a new result in. a multi-cutting jet torch. There seems to besome kind of interaction between the different oxygen jets that prevents them from cutting a kerf with parallel sides when the jets are located in a row and close enough together to cut a single wide kerf in a direction transverse of the row. I have discovered that the closely-spaced oxygen jets do not react upon one another in this way if the orifices from which the jets issue are located close to the surface of the workpiece and the preheating-flame passages are spaced further from the work.

Another object of the invention is to distribute the gas more evenly among a number of diflerent orifices. This object is attained as a result of several features of construction. In accordance with one feature, the torch is provided with two distributing chambers, with connecting passages through which gas from a primary chamber flows into a secondary chamber, in combination with an equal number of metering ports through which the gas flows from the secondary chamber to the jet passages of the torch. I

Another feature relates to jet passages spaced along the length of a distributing chamber to which gas is supplied through a conduit that opens through the wall of the chamber on the In the accompanying drawing, forming a part hereof:

. Fig. 1 is an end view of a cutting tip embody- 7 ing this invention.

Figs. 2 and 3 are sectional views taken on the lines 2--2 and 33, respectively, of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but showing the distributing chamber N that is opposite the side opposite the gas passages, those gas pas-- inlet conduit I3 and at points spaced lengthwise.

of the chamber. These passages l6 and I! lead to a secondary distributing chamber l8 that is parallel to the primary chamber N.

in order to counteract the effect of the approach velocity of the gas entering the chamber H from the inlet conduit I3, the passages I6 that are in line with the conduit is are of somewhat smaller cross-section than the passages II which are beyond the direct influence of the approach velocity of the entering gas. This obtains more even distribution of the gas to the secondary distributing chamber I8.

The end face of the tip I 0 has a central portion 20 that is at a diflerent level from side areas 2| of the endface, the central portion 20 being closer to the work than the side areas by a distance of the order of a; of an inch.

Jet passages 22 for the cutting oxygen open through the central portion!!! of the tip and communicate with the secondary distributing chamber 18 through metering ports 23 which are preferably all the same size, and in line with the passages l6, H.

The jet passages 22 have parallel axes and are preferably disposed in a row. These passages 22 are spaced close enough together so that the oxygen jets that they project against the work cut a common kerf when the torch ismoved across the work with the length of the row of passages 22 transverse of the direction of relative movement of the torch across the work.

Passages 25 for supplying a mixture of oxygen and fuel gas for preheating flames open through the side areas 2| at spaced points along generally arcuate lines around the ends of the cutting ;Iet passages 22.

Oxygen is supplied to the passages 25 through a port 26 from an annular chamber 21, and iuel gas, such as acetylene, enters the passages 25 irom an annular chamber 28 through a port II.

Figs. 4 and show a modified form of the invention for cutting narrower keris than the tip oi-Figs. 1-3. A tip 30 has the same construction as the tip Ill except that there are fewer passages for both cutting oxygen and preheating flame gas.

Oxygen is supplied from an inlet conduit 33 to a primar distributing chamber 34 that has three passages 36, 31 leading to a secondary distributing chamber 38. Passage 38 is in line with the conduit 33 and is of smaller cross-section than the passages 31 that are far enough to the side not to be ailected directly by the approach velocity of the gas entering the chamber from the inlet conduit 33.

Opposite the ends of the passages 36, 31 there are metering ports 38 through which oxygen is supplied to cutting jet pasages 40 that open through the end face of the torch. There are only three jet passages 40 in the tip of Figs. 4 and 5 instead of five as in the tip of Figs. 1-3. The three-orifice tip is for cutting narrower kerfs. Because of the shorter row of cutting let orifices, the tip 30 needs iewerpreheating flames. Four preheating jet passages 48 are shown in Fig. 4.

In operating the torch of this invention, the end-face surface through which the cutting jet passages 22 or 40 open is kept within about %2 of an inch ofthe surface of the work-piece.- If the torch is moved further from the work, the parallelity oi the side walls, of the kerf drops 01! sharply. The fact that the side areas of the end face are spaced further from the work prevents backflring oi the preheating flames.

When the tip is to be used for cutting kerfs or a width narrower than the length of the row ascents of cutting Jet orifices, the tip is turned so that the row extends at an oblique angle to the direction or relative movement of the torchacross the work.

Changes and modifications can be made in the illustrated embodiments of the invention, and some features can be used without others.

I claim:

1. A tip having an end face, a, plurality of Jet passages opening through the end face, a distributing chamber from which gas is supplied to said jet passages, an initial distributing chamher, a plurality of communicating passages between said distributing chambers at points spaced along a line extending transversely of the tip, and a gas inlet conduit opening into the initial distributing chamber on the side opposite the communicating passages, said communicating passages being substantially smaller in crosssection than the inlet conduit and those of the communicating passages directly opposite the gas-inlet conduit being of smaller cross-section than the other communicating passages.

2. A tip having a primary and a secondary distributing chamber, communicating passages between the chambers at points spaced along a line extending transversely of the tip, an inlet GEORGE L. WALKER. 

